Does Alamo require an IDP in Costa Rica?

Alamo's standard minimum rental age in the US is 21 (18 in Michigan and New York where state law requires it); renters aged 21-24 pay a "young/youthful driver" surcharge that averages about $25 per day but varies by location (for example roughly $13/day in Michigan and $20/day in New York), and under-25 renters may be restricted to certain car classes.

A major credit card in the primary renter's name is required at most locations; debit/check cards bearing a Visa, Mastercard or Discover logo are accepted at airport locations only with a ticketed return travel itinerary (Discover not accepted in Canada), and the name/address on the card and license must match, with a hold placed at pickup that reduces available funds.

Additional authorized drivers typically cost about $15 per day each (around $5/day in New York), and every additional driver must also meet the minimum-age and license requirements; some promotions or contracted/corporate rates waive the fee. Alamo requires each driver to hold a valid, unexpired driver's license; the license must have been issued before the rental and held for the qualifying period, with locations commonly expecting it to have been held for at least 1 year.

Vehicles rented in the US may typically be driven throughout the US and Canada but cannot be taken into Mexico; vehicles rented in Canada may be driven in Canada and the US. Cross-border and one-way rentals must be disclosed and authorized at the counter, and one-way availability and drop fees vary by location.

Alamo states an International Driving Permit cannot be used on its own and the home-country license must always be presented; an IDP is recommended (not required) when the license uses Roman/English letters, but is required when the license is in a non-Roman alphabet (e.g. Russian, Japanese, Arabic), with a typed professional translation as a substitute if no IDP is available.

A handful of routes are tolled, most notably Ruta 27 (San Jose to the Pacific via Caldera) with several small booths; tourists pay cash in colones (typically a few hundred to ~1,000 colones per booth) at the cabin.

Curbs painted yellow forbid stopping near hydrants, bus stops and taxi stands; many town centres run paid street zones ('boletas de parquimetro') where you buy and display a paper ticket, and 'cuidacarros' informally watch parked cars for a small tip.

Speeding tickets are notoriously steep (roughly 100,000-300,000+ colones, around US$200-450 for serious excess), and fines for phone use or no seatbelt also run into the tens of thousands of colones; transit police issue a ticket rather than collect cash roadside, and rental firms pass camera/photo-radar fines to the renter's card.

Call 911 and notify the rental company immediately; by law you must NOT move the vehicles until the transit police (Transito) and the INS insurance inspector arrive and document the scene, even if you are blocking traffic.